Oscillatory washing machine agitator



May 31, 1949. MARSH 2,471,760

OSCILLATORY WASHING MACHINE AGITATOR Filed April 18, 1945 Patented May 31, 1949 OSCILLATORY WASHING MAKJHINE AGITATOR Rutherford H. Marsh, Girard, Pa.; Mildred L. Irons administratrix of said Rutherford H.

Marsh, deceased Application April 18, 1945, Serial No. 588,975

4 Claims.

This invention relates to agitator type washing machines and is intended to improve the washing action by providing vanes on the agitator having leading faces inclined forwardly in the direction of movement. In a preferred form each vane comprises two blades diverging away .from the bottom of the agitator. Further objects and advantages appear in the specification and claims.

In the drawing, Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a washing machine; Fig. 2 is a diagrammatic view of the oscillating mechanism; Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the agitator; Fig. 4 is a top plan of the agitator; and Fig. 5 is a fragmentary transverse section through one of the vanes on line 5-5 of Fig. 4.

In the drawing indicates a support in which are housed tubs 2 arranged side by side. Beneath the tubs is a gear casing 3 having shafts t connected by clutches 5 to agitator shafts 6 project-- ing through the bottom of the tubs. The shafts extend through a packing box '5 containing packing 8 tightened by a nut The clutches are selectively controlled by levers it! pivoted on brackets II on the gear casing and having handles l2 projecting through the slots in the housing. The slots are preferably arranged so that the handles can be locked in the engaged and disengaged positions. The driving mechanism for the agitator shafts comprises pinions l3 on the shafts i and segment gears it pivoted at IS on the gear case. On the upper side of the segment gears are fixed pins Hi receivable in a slot l! in a cross head It connected by a clevis l9 to an eccentric strap 2%. The cross head rests on and is supported by the segment gears. The eccentric strap fits on an eccentric 2| on the upper face of a worm gear 22' driven by a worm shaft 23 connected to a driving motor. Fixed to the worm gear is a wringer drive shaft 24 which projects up through a wringer post 2-5 arranged between the tubs so that the wringer can be used to wring into and out of either tub.

On each agitator shaft is an agitator 26 having a hub 21 fitting on a squared portion iii on the agitator shaft. At the lower end the hub flares outward and merges into a bottom disc 29 adjacent the bottom of the tub. On the upper or outer surface of the hub (the bottom disc 29 and the conical flaring portion) are vanes 363, each of which comprises two blades 3! arranged in the form of a V with the apex adjacent the outer surface of the hub disc. The blades diverge from the outer surface of the hub disc with increasing curvature, the concave or undercut faces serving respectively as the leading faces of the vanes in opposite directions of rotation of the agitator. The increased curvature at the upper edges 32 of the blades makes the agitator more effective in setting up the water currents necessary to circulate the clothes. The blades provide a trough or channel 33 in the upper surface of the vane into which the clothes are drawn during the oscillation of the agitator. This provides a more extended surface of the vanes against which the clothes are flexed.

In the operation, the vanes of the agitator set up radial water currents causing circulation of the clothes in the direction indicated by arrows 34. The forwardly inclined surfaces of the blades are more effective in setting up the water currents. The clothes are moved radially outward by the water currents, are rubbed 'by the upper edges of the blades and by contact with the blade surface in the trough 33. The improvement in the washing action is due in part to the better circulation of the water and in part to the more extensive upper surface of the vanes against which the clothes are flexed during the oscillation of the agitator.

What I claim as new is:

1. In a washing machine, an oscillatory agitator having a vane with an upper face between liquid impelling side faces, the upper face being free to liquid flow from one side face to the other over the upper face, a trough in the upper face, and the liquid impelling side faces converging toward the base of the trough.

2. In a washing machine, an oscillatory agitator having a vane with an upper face between liquid impelling side faces, the upper face being free to liquid flow from one side face to the other over the upper face, a trough in the upper face, and the liquid impelling side faces being undercut beneath the upper face.

3. In a washing machine, an oscillatory agitator having a hub with a surface extending outward from the center, vanes on said surface extending outward from the center and projecting axially from the surface, said vanes having liquid impelling side faces diverging axially away from said surface.

4. In a washing machine, an oscillatory agitator having a hub with a surface extending outward from the center, vanes on said surface extending outward from the center and projecting axially from the surface, saidvanes having an upper face spaced axially from said surface and liquid impelling side faces undercut beneath said upper face.

RUTHERFORD H. MARSH.

\ REFERENCES CITED Number 4 UNITED STATES PATENTS Name- Date Lewis May 13, 1924 Labisky Mar. 6', 1928 Voss Apr. 29, 1930 Kirby (B) Dec. 1, 1931 Hume Oct. 27, 1936 Kirby (C) Jan. 7, 1941 Kirby (A) -July 15, 1941 McMahon 1 .Oct. 20, 1942 Kirby (D) Nov. 17, 1942 Geldhof Mar. 2, 1943 

